Comparison of isolation procedures for Mexican oregano oil

The influence of distillation time on the composition of Mexican oregano oil was investigated. It was observed that the order of recovery of the components was determined by their solubility when water is in contact with the plant material as in hydrodistillation and simultaneous distillation-solvent extraction, while in steam distillation the order was determined by their boiling points. The three methods produced the same composition. The oil obtained by extraction method had higher proportion of hydrocarbons and lower amount of p-cymene. As a result of this investigation it was shown that this compound was partly an artefact of distillation.     

Missing Link between Helical Nano‐ and Microfilaments in B4 Phase Bent‐Core Liquid Crystals,and Deciphering which Chiral Center Controls the Filament Handedness

The range of possible morphologies for bent‐core B4 phase liquid crystals has recently expanded from helical nanofilaments (HNFs) and modulated HNFs to dual modulated HNFs, helical microfilaments, and heliconical‐layered nanocylinders. These new morphologies are observed when one or both aliphatic side chains contain a chiral center. Here, the following questions are addressed: which of these two chiral centers controls the handedness (helicity) and which morphology of the nanofilaments is formed by bent‐core liquid crystals with tris‐biphenyl diester core flanked by two chiral 2‐octyloxy side chains? The combined results reveal that the longer arm of these nonsymmetric bent‐core liquid crystals controls the handedness of the resulting dual modulated HNFs. These derivatives with opposite configuration of the two chiral side chains now feature twice as large dimensions compared to the homochiral derivatives with identical configuration. These results are supported by density functional theory calculations and stochastic dynamic atomistic simulations, which reveal that the relative difference between the para‐ and meta‐sides of the described series of compounds drives the variation in morphology. Finally, X‐ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) data also uncover the new morphology for B4 phases featuring p2/m symmetry within the filaments and less pronounced crystalline character.     

Towards Recyclable Nanoporous Polymer Membranes for the Synthesis of One-dimensional Nanoscale Gold Colloids

Proof-of-concept studies towards recyclable nanoporous track-etched polymer membranes for template-synthesis of one-dimensional colloidal gold rods indicate that surfactant-capped gold nanorods can be synthesised within and isolated from polyethylene terephthalate (Lavsan) membranes using organic solvents with or without sonication. Thereafter, the same Lavsan membrance can be re-used for at least one to two additional synthetic cycles. An erratum to this article can be found at     

Topology-Based Prediction of Pathway Dysregulation Induced by Intense Terahertz Pulses in Human Skin Tissue Models

The strong interaction between terahertz (THz) radiation and biological systems has motivated the development of several biomedical technologies, including imaging and spectroscopy applications with promising potential for improved disease diagnosis. This interaction mechanism also implies that external excitation with intense pulses of THz energy could couple to important biological structures and induce significant downstream phenotypic effects. In this study, we expose human skin tissue models to a prolonged train of high-intensity THz pulses and measure the resulting global differential gene expression. From these data, signal pathway perturbation analysis identified pathways that are predicted to be significantly dysregulated, including the cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction and glioma pathways, and further identified the gene-level mechanisms predominantly responsible. These results indicate that induction of an inflammatory-like response and suppression of division/differentiation in cancer are possible. These effects could be further explored and characterized in different types of normal and cancerous tissues to determine potential novel clinical applicability of intense THz pulses.     

Analysis of trans–cis fatty acids in fatty acid steryl esters isolated from soybean oil deodoriser distillate

The characterisation of the isolated natural product from soybean oil deodoriser distillate (SODD) has gained increasing importance due to health concerns. The purpose of the present work was to characterise fatty acids steryl esters (FASEs) composition and to determine the trans fatty acids (TFAs) contents in FASEs obtained from SODD by using simple and accurate method. Isolation of FASEs with saturated fatty acids moieties from FASEs mixture was also developed. It was found that the fatty acids composition of the isolated FASEs were 31.74% palmitate acid (C16:0), 9.99% stearic acid (C18:0), 0.46% elaidic acid (C18:1 trans-9), 27.51% oleic acid (C18:1 cis-9), 0.19% linoleaidic acid (C18:2 cis-9, trans-12), and 29.19% linoleic acid (C18:2 cis-9, cis-12). TFAs, which account for about 0.65% of the total fatty acids, were detected in the isolated FASEs. Palmitate and stearate steryl esters isolated from SODD are promising natural product because they are free of trans-isomers.     

The Strain Index (SI) and Threshold Limit Value (TLV) for Hand Activity Level (HAL): risk of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) in a prospective cohort

A cohort of 536 workers was enrolled from 10 diverse manufacturing facilities and was followed monthly for six years. Job physical exposures were individually measured. Worker demographics, medical history, psychosocial factors, current musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and nerve conduction studies (NCS) were obtained. Point and lifetime prevalence of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) at baseline (symptoms + abnormal NCS) were 10.3% and 19.8%. During follow-up, there were 35 new CTS cases (left, right or both hands). Factors predicting development of CTS included: job physical exposure (American conference of governmental industrial hygienists Threshold Limit Value (ACGIH TLV) for Hand Activity Level (HAL) and the Strain Index (SI)), age, BMI, other MSDs, inflammatory arthritis, gardening outside of work and feelings of depression. In the adjusted models, the TLV for HAL and the SI were both significant per unit increase in exposure with hazard ratios (HR) increasing up to a maximum of 5.4 (p = 0.05) and 5.3 (p = 0.03), respectively; however, similar to other reports, both suggested lower risk at higher exposures. Data suggest that the TLV for HAL and the SI are useful metrics for estimating exposure to biomechanical stressors. PRACTITIONER SUMMARY: This study was conducted to determine how well the TLV for HAL and the SI predict risk of CTS using a prospective cohort design with survival analysis. Both the TLV for HAL and the SI were found to predict risk of CTS when adjusted for relevant covariates.     

Études sur l’efficacité et la durabilité de deux traitements appliqués à un calcaire

Ce travail présente une étude en laboratoire sur l’efficacité et la durabilité de deux produits de traitement des pierres: un hydrofuge de surface (à base de résine silicone) et un produit de protection superficielle contre les agents atmosphériques et la pollution (qui se compose d’un polymère acrylique, d’un solvant et d’une cire synthétique). La pierre étudiée était un calcaire d’Ançã, très utilisé dans le centre du pays et dont la conservation dans des monuments historiques pose de graves problèmes. Les méthodes d’essai utilisées pour la caractérisation du calcaire ont été celles recommandées par la Commission 25 PEM (Protection et Erosion des Monuments) de la RILEM. Dans le but d’évaluer l’efficacité et la durabilité du traitement acrylique, des éprouvettes traitées et non-traitées (pour servir de comparaison) ont été soumises aux essais suivants: —Action de la lumière; action de l’eau et de la lumière par exposition dans un appareil de vieillissement du type arc voltaïque; action de l’anhydride sulfureux; et essai de cristallisation. Sur les éprouvettes traitées avec le produit hydrofuge siliconique on a réalisé les mêmes essais, sauf ceux concernant la cristallisation et l’action de l’anhydride sulfureux. Les effets du vieillissement causé par ces essais ont été appréciés par observation visuelle périodique et par les déterminations suivantes: angle de contact, absorption par gouttes, absorption d’eau pendant 48 h, coefficient d’absorption d’eau (capillarité), et absorption d’eau par hygroscopicité. Finalement on présente une appréciation des résultats obtenus.     

Discotic Liquid Crystal‐Functionalized Gold Nanorods: 2‐ and 3D Self‐Assembly and Macroscopic Alignment as well as Increased Charge Carrier Mobility in Hexagonal Columnar Liquid Crystal Hosts Affected by Molecular Packing and π–π Interactions

Gold nanorods functionalized with triphenylene‐based discotic liquid crystal (LC) motifs show striking self‐assembly behavior both on transmission electron microscopy (TEM) grids as well as in the bulk enforced by the π–π‐stacking of triphenylene groups of adjacent nanorods. TEM images confirm that these discotic LC nanorods form ribbons of parallel‐stacked nanorods several hundred nanometer long. The pursued silane conjugation approach to decorate the nanorods allows for the preparation of dispersions of the nanorods in the hexagonal columnar phases of parent discotic LCs, where the nanorods can be macroscopically aligned with almost 80% efficiency by a simple shearing protocol. Doping the parent host materials with about 1% by weight of the discotic LC‐capped nanorods also reduces the lattice parameter and the intracolumnar packing, which gives rise to enhanced charge carrier mobility in these hosts as determined by time‐of‐flight measurements.